A Message from President Schulz | June 1, 2020
Dear Campus Community,
I am writing you today with a heavy heart and a shared sense of grief, sadness and anger. “I can’t breathe.” These are words that George Floyd shared as he was murdered in Minneapolis last week. I know that our students, faculty and staff are hurting and grieving. We are grieving together.
Like you, I have been processing a multitude of emotions since George Floyd was murdered last week in Minneapolis, yet I want to recognize the unique feelings of sadness, grief, anger and fear that our Black community is experiencing and has experienced over the past 400 years in our nation. This criminal act of white supremacy follows recent acts against Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia and Breonna Taylor in Kentucky. And like you, I recognize that there are so many innocent victims of violence that do not make the headlines, and countless unspeakable acts of racism in our nation. To be clear, these incidents are not new in America, and are all too common. We are not living up to the promise of who we could be as a nation, who we should be.
As we struggle to process these recent incidents across our nation, it should go without saying that these acts are absolutely unacceptable. But recent incidents offer each of us a sobering reminder – it needs to be said. White supremacy and all forms of racism have no place in our country and in our local community. It is not enough to “not be racist” – we must stand in solidarity, be bold in our words and action, and be anti-racist. Only then can we deliver on our promise and commitment to provide learning and work environments that are welcoming, inclusive, and respectful to all.
As educators, we have a unique opportunity and an absolute responsibility to lead our community to a better future, for all members of our community. I am in discussions with campus leaders, including our Umoja Program, to create a safe space to offer support, to have crucial conversations about these struggles and to facilitate action that can foster positive change in our campus community and beyond. In collaboration with our Umoja Program, the college is planning an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to come together, and additional information will be shared with our campus community once the details are finalized. I have also scheduled an open office hour via zoom for this Thursday, June 4 at 10 a.m. for anyone who would like to meet with me as we process and reflect on these incidents, and take steps to move forward. Details for this office hour can be found in the President’s Weekly.
We have support services in place to assist you: All faculty and staff may access our Employee Assistance Program, at www.nocccd.edu/employee-benefits. This is a confidential support service available to all employees. Information on this support for employees can also be found in myGateway. Students can access remote mental health support and counseling services by visiting our Health Services department at the following link: health.fullcoll.edu.
At Fullerton College, we continue to strive to ensure that our college is a welcoming and inclusive campus community where empathy and kindness exists throughout our classrooms, labs, offices and meeting rooms. There is certainly more work to do, and I ask for your help to denounce racism in all forms, so that we can become the nation, community, and college I know we can become.
Together we can help make our community, state and nation a more welcoming and supportive place to learn, work, live and thrive. Let’s lead the change that our nation so desperately needs right now.
In Solidarity,
Greg Schulz
President
Fullerton College
